The bladder serves two functions: for storage of urine and evacuation of urine. While the two functions are related and depend upon each other, evacuation requires a short period of time and storage occupies most of the bladder's functional time. Deviation from normal bladder function constitutes symptomatology of bladder dysfunction. If a bladder cannot function as a reservoir to retain urine, the problem is known as incontinence. Conversely, if a bladder is unable to evacuate urine, the problem is called urinary retention. However, incontinence may occur once the bladder has filled to capacity and overflows. This is known as overflow incontinence. These symptoms are caused by many different disease processes. All, however, affect the mechanism of voiding, resulting in sensory or motor neurogenic-type bladders.
Neurogenic bladder disease is frequently found in paraplegia, multiple sclerosis, cerebral vascular accidents, brain injuries, spinal cord lesions, trauma, infection or disogenic disease affecting the sacral area of the spinal cord, extensive abdominal surgical operations and diabetes.
This invention relates to the problem or urinary retention and/or the inability to completely empty the bladder during micturition. Patients with urinary retention or increased post-void residuals require intermittent catheterization. Patients who can self-cathereterize then require less invasive intervention, therefore decreasing the overall expenses associated with neurogenic bladder disease.
Generally speaking, patients who require intermittent self-catheterization have lower-motor and/or sensory type neurogenic bladders that result in the retention of urine either from the inability to generate nerve impulses that contract the bladder muscle adequately or the loss of the voiding reflex arc completely. This is due to interference of nerve pathways in the brain or spinal column, or the sacral area of the spinal column where nerve impulses control detrusor function and the process of micturition.
These patients will retain large quantities or urine. They may or may not have any sensation at signalling them to intentionally urinate. The normal bladder capacity is from about 400-500 cc's, but many patients requiring intermittent catheterization generally have large bladder capacities of from about 600-1500 cc's.
If there is a malfunction of an urethral sphincter, there is potential of infected urine returning to the kidney causing a kidney stone or an infection, or bladder stones formed due to urinary stasis.
It is customary for women with lower-motor neuron type neurogenic bladders to insert a urethral catheter to void in the bathroom on a predetermined time schedule. Self-catheterization is normally performed every four to six hours because urine that remains in the bladder is prone to infection or stone formation.
Patients that have neurological dysfunction may have other neurological symptoms, as well. For example, multiple sclerosis patients often have fine-motor neuron dysfunction often accompanied by visual impairment. This makes intermittent self-catheterization difficult if not impossible since the process generally requires the ability of the patient to have fine motor skills and good vision to locate the urinary meatus.
Consequently, it is an object of the present invention to increase the potential and possibility for intermittent self-catheterization by those women with neuromuscular dysfunctions or complications resulting from other disorders which require the process of intermittent self-catheterization to aid in the function of micturition.
It is a particular object of the present invention to produce a medical device to assist in the process of intermittent self-catheterization.